And Then There Were Three
Actually, there are eight teams left in the DIII Volleyball Tournament. But there are only three area ladies still competing. And all from the same high school.
Playing a sport in college is an accomplishment. Being on a team that makes it to the NCAA postseason tournament is special. And being on a team to advance to the quarterfinals is, well, a special accomplishment. But, what do you call it if you are in that situation and you look across the net and see your high school teammate? Depending on the match results for the quarterfinal round, that can be the reality for three area ladies.
The tournament started with 39 ladies from Missouri and Kansas. They came from 31 high schools. And they compete for 11 NCAA Division III colleges. Three rounds later, those numbers are 3 ladies from 1 high school competing for 2 colleges.
Pembroke Hill produced those three elite volleyball players. And if anything, their classroom accomplishments exceed their on-court success.
Lilly Edwards, No. 16, Pembroke Hill Class of 2019, is a senior outside hitter for MIT. She led the Engineers in kills this season and has been a big factor for her team throughout her collegiate career. Lilly is a Computer Science and Molecular Biology major which means she is killing it both on and off the court.
Paige Edwards, No. 7, Pembroke Hill Class of 2022, is a freshman outside hitter for MIT, and has been contributing increasingly throughout her first year. Paige got the opportunity to share spots on the same volleyball roster with her older sister, just like she earned four years ago at Pembroke Hill. Paige is majoring in Nuclear Science and Engineering.
Sarah Lattan, No. 18, Pembroke Hill Class of 2022, is a freshman middle blocker for New York University. A stress fracture has sidelined Sarah for now, but she will be back for three more years. Sarah is majoring in Business at the Leonard N. Stern School of Business with a concentration in Marketing and Sustainability. She says that she chose her college for its “academics and volleyball”. Well Sarah, NYU chose you for YOUR “academics and volleyball”.
As their high school coach, Lynn O’Toole knows these three ladies well. She says she enjoyed witnessing “their endless hours of work competing, training, and being students of the game”. Coach O’Toole says she is “extremely excited to see them follow their passion at the next level”.
It’s hard to imagine how many volleyball matches Jason Edwards has watched with two daughters continuing to play on after high school. Jason says, “What is most satisfying is seeing how my daughters have combined their love for both academics and athletics”.
Lisa Lattan appreciates having been able to attend matches in which her daughter has competed. She says that “it has been fun to watch Sarah jump right in, grow up fast, and to learn how to balance her time”.
Actually, these three ladies have already met on the collegiate volleyball court. MIT and NYU played a match in the NYU Showdown that took place in Brooklyn on October 8. The match went back and forth for five sets. NYU 28-26, MIT 25-21, NYU 25-20, MIT 25-20, with NYU edging MIT 15-13 in the deciding set. Total sets for the match were even at 109 each. That is exciting volleyball. NYU entered the postseason ranked No. 8 and now has a 28 and 6 record. MIT has a record of 27 and 5 and was ranked No. 18 entering the tournament.
The NCAA re-seeds the eight that get to the quarterfinals. No. 6 Seed MIT will play No. 3 Seed Trinity (TX) at 11:30 on Wednesday. No. 2 Seed NYU will play No. 7 Seed Transylvania at 2:00 on Wednesday. Perhaps the former Raiders will meet on the court at 4:00 on Thursday for a semifinal match.
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